2005 BMW 325i (~100,000 miles) - How critical is a transmission fluid/filter change?

[BrianSR]

Hey guys,

Curious to hear what you guys think about whether or not it's worth the time/effort/money to get the transmission fluid and filter changed on my 2005 325i, given that 1) Everything runs and drives perfectly, 2) I need this thing to be reliable on lengthy trips, and 2) I am unlikely to keep this car more than another year or so and want to be able to sell a decent car to the next owner. As recently as a few thousand miles ago, I did have my mechanic top the fluid off - he said it was a few quarts low, and there is a small leak.

Is it worth it? Seems like it's between $200 and $450 for the parts/labor.

Thanks!

[TonyAngel]

Others might disagree, but I've always been in the "change the fluid camp." Even BMW now says that fluid should be changed at 100,000 miles. Given a choice, I'd do it every 50k miles. You say that it's been running well? Was it running well when it was a few quarts low? I think that's pretty significant. If you're only planning to keep the car another year, it will likely do that without changing the fluid. Did your mechanic make any comments about what shape your fluid was in?

Now, passing a decent car along to the next buyer is an entirely different thing. Really, what are you going to say if they ask if you've ever changed the fluid? Of course, there is the possibility that changing the fluid could cause the transmission to start slipping, but if that happens, the transmission was shot anyway. Well, the clutches. What did your mechanic say?

[dhurley34]

Do it. /thread